MotoGP Preview: The 2001 Japanese Grand Prix.

The 2001 MotoGP World Championship bursts into action this weekend at Suzuka, with the first of 16 stops on Grand Prix motorcycling's first world tour of the 21st century.

The Japanese Grand Prix always enjoys a special atmosphere, with the dominant Japanese manufacturers all out to impress on home soil. This extra pressure on both rider an team is almost palpable in the Suzuka pit lane - and the circuit is ultra-demanding too.

Suzuka is unique in the world of MotoGP racing in that it is the only figure-of-eight racetrack and also the fourth fastest venue of the year (after Assen, Phillip Island and Mugello). It's also a circuit that doesn't suffer fools, with a huge variety of complex corners, from the left-right-left-right Esses to the high-speed Dunlop Curve and from the dead-stop chicane to the crucial Spoon Curve.

The track has undergone minor changes for 2001, with recent safety improvements made to the Esses, Dunlop, Degner and 130R corners. These works are the start of a whole series of improvements that will include enlarged circuit infrastructure and improved spectator facilities.

This year's 500 series will mark a momentous moment in Grand Prix history, for it is the last 500cc World Championship before four-strokes enter the arena in 2002. The 500 series has been motorcycling's premier prize since its inauguration in 1949 and there are plenty of riders who want to write their place in history by winning this last 500cc crown.

Once again there's a whole bunch of riders in with a serious chance of winning the title this season, which has the potential to be the closest ever.

Reigning World Champion Kenny Roberts Jr started the pre-season testing unhappy at the pace of his Suzuki, with the American rarely found in the top three at any of the major tests.

However, both Roberts and new teammate Sete Gibernau, have softened their concern in recent weeks and appear much more confident following fine-tuning of the machine. Whether the lack of pace was genuine or simply 'sandbagging' in an attempt to wrong foot the opposition will only be answered when the Grand Prix machines take to the track on Thursday.

In contrast, the Marlboro Yamaha duo of Max Biaggi and Carlos Checa has excelled throughout pre-season testing. Both riders have impressed wherever they've ridden, from Jerez to Sepang and from Estoril to Suzuka.

The Italian and Spaniard say they are in fighting mood and desperate to get beyond the gruelling groundwork and go racing. They also claim to be in better shape than ever, having come through the winter injury free, and are entering their third season with the Marlboro Yamaha Team.

Indeed, no other rider has matched their consistency from one track to the next in testing, and if they can keep the momentum going it would be a brave person to bet against the Roman in particular come race day.

Runner-up in the 2000 championship, Valentino Rossi knows that there is only one place left for him to improve to and he is sure to mount a consistent challenge throughout the season on his Nastro Azzurro Honda.

Testing has seen the Italian occasionally fastest - but more often than not he has appeared unwilling to show his cards with a super quick qualifying lap, and has instead worked methodically on the set-up of his Honda NSR with a smooth, consistent pace.

Having been the only rider to really trouble Roberts in 2000 it seems Rossi can only be stronger this season.

With sponsorship secured from tobacco giant West over the winter, the Honda Pons riders, Loris Capirossi and Ales Barros, have also shown their potential by topping several test sessions and look able to convert the occasional race wins obtained last year into a fully fledged championship battle, if they can stay injury free.

The once dominant Repsol Honda team have reduced their squad to two riders; 1999 World Champion Alex Criville and 250cc star Tohru Ukawa.

Criville will be looking to rebuild his confidence after a disastrous 2000 season which saw him finish ninth in the overall points standings, however his pre-season preparation has been far from ideal with a hand injury sustained in testing severely restricting his running.

Ukawa could spring a surprise at his home track, having topped the recent three-day test, but is likely to have his hands full learning the 500cc machine and so cannot be expected to launch a full title campaign.

Also new to the 500cc ranks are reigning 250cc World Champion Olivier Jacque and teammate Shinja Nakano, who will ride for the Gauloises Yamaha Tech 3 team as both riders and team graduate together to the 500cc class.

Jacques preparation could hardly have gone worse with a crash in the Sepang test ruling the Frenchman out of any further testing. He will head to Suzuka with a worryingly low amount of mileage on the Yamaha.

Nakano on the other hand has had a trouble free pre-season, having concentrated on learning the 500cc's capabilities while eager to avoid injury. A smart and natural racer, Nakano could well feature at his home track and expect improvement from him as the season progresses.

New to the Red Bull Yamaha team will be World Superbike ace Noriyuki Haga, who joins Australian Garry McCoy. Great things are expected of the Japanese rider who will be looking to continue where he left World Superbikes - at the front.

Always a hard charger, Haga has the ability to shake-up the MotoGP establishment while the spectacular McCoy has proved that he can match the World's best on his day, the Australian just needs to feature at every round in order to prove his critics wrong.

The Shell Advance Honda Team have made the move from the 250cc class and signed British Superbike runner-up Chris Walker to partner Leon Haslam on their Honda NSR's. They face a steep learning curve as they make the jump to the pinnacle of Motorcycle racing, but both have the talent - and team behind them - to succeed, providing they take one step at a time and don't overstretch themselves in the early races.

Meanwhile, Jurgen van den Goorbergh could upset the order after setting an impressing pace during some of the pre-season tests.

In the 250cc ranks the main question seems to be who will challenge Daijiro Katoh, the Telefonica MoviStar Honda rider having dominated almost every pre-season test after finishing third in the 2000 championship.

With both Nakano and Jacque now in 500's the Japanese riders main challenge looks set to come from Italian Marco Melandri on the MS Aprilia, although 125cc Champion Roberto Locatelli will be keen to add another world crown to his collection.

Back in the 250cc class will be veteran Jeremy McWilliams, the Ulsterman having fallen victim to Aprilia's canning of their 500cc machine in preparation for a four-stroke entry in 2002. It seems hard to believe that McWilliams has yet to win a Grand Prix, but 2001 could certainly be his year.

Joining McWilliams in the Milan-based Aprilia team, which is sponsored by Swiss financial institution Sogevalor, will be nineteen year old Australian Anthony West, who finished sixth in the MotoGP 250cc Championship, riding a NSR Honda but only finalised his 2001 plans last week.

Also new in the 250cc class will be female racer Katja Poensgen, who will ride for the Racing Factory Aprilia team.

The 125cc class will again see a host of talented up-and-coming riders battling tooth and nail as they take their first steps on the MotoGP ladder, with established names battling against comparative unknowns.

Derbi's Youichi Ui, runner-up to Locatelli in 2000, will be focused on obtaining the title that slipped from his gasp towards the end of last season, while 2001 will mark the return of motorcycle manufacturer Gilera to the world scene, with Manuel Poggiali on board.

Following Suzuka the MotoGP circus heads southwest for the South African GP at Welkom on April 22 and then to Europe for ten rounds, beginning with the Spanish GP at Jerez on May 6.

The season concludes with four more out-of-Europe events, with the season finale in Rio de Janeiro on November 3.